We had a bit of an eye-opener the other night. I noticed a spot of Bella's tummy that looked really odd—a red ring about the size of a fingernail with a dot in the middle. My husband thought it might be ringworm. Looking it up on the Internet made it seem fairly likely. Our neighbor is a vet tech and my husband ran the picture over to her to take a look. She was late for work and took a hurried glance (at the picture, not Bella's tummy) and confirmed it.
Yikes! All the dog's bedding needed washing, it was recommended toys be washed in a bleach solution or tossed, carpets needed daily vacuuming. An over the counter anti-fungal cream needed to be applied to the outbreak twice a day. Ringworm is highly contagious to boot, so our clothes needed washing, our hands had to be covered to pet the dog—and the verdict was this could last for months! Not only that, but Bella had just been playing with a couple of friends' dogs, so they had to be notified. You get the picture; a cascade of events around this spot.
I called the vet and ran through what I was doing and wondered what else was necessary to control and contain this. Her returned message stated it was highly unlikely it was ringworm. Wow! Really? Her take was it could be a bug bite. Bella did not seem to be bothered at all by it, though she hated being quarantined to the kitchen.
Still, I made an appointment to take the pup in to the vet in a day or two, but already the spot is nearly gone. No other spots have appeared. I've called everyone back with what's going on and will continue the update if necessary. However, I just couldn't, just can't, imagine what it would be like not being able to pet my dog (without gloves) or kiss her furry face. (That brought up a whole additional rash of horrible thoughts. Wonder if I got ringworm on my face!)
I'm feeling pretty good about it all. I think by tomorrow there will be no indication there was even a mark on the pup's stomach. What a relief! The lesson here is don't self-diagnose on the Internet and don't ask a knowledgeable person who is in a hurry for a diagnosis!
Yikes! All the dog's bedding needed washing, it was recommended toys be washed in a bleach solution or tossed, carpets needed daily vacuuming. An over the counter anti-fungal cream needed to be applied to the outbreak twice a day. Ringworm is highly contagious to boot, so our clothes needed washing, our hands had to be covered to pet the dog—and the verdict was this could last for months! Not only that, but Bella had just been playing with a couple of friends' dogs, so they had to be notified. You get the picture; a cascade of events around this spot.
I called the vet and ran through what I was doing and wondered what else was necessary to control and contain this. Her returned message stated it was highly unlikely it was ringworm. Wow! Really? Her take was it could be a bug bite. Bella did not seem to be bothered at all by it, though she hated being quarantined to the kitchen.
Still, I made an appointment to take the pup in to the vet in a day or two, but already the spot is nearly gone. No other spots have appeared. I've called everyone back with what's going on and will continue the update if necessary. However, I just couldn't, just can't, imagine what it would be like not being able to pet my dog (without gloves) or kiss her furry face. (That brought up a whole additional rash of horrible thoughts. Wonder if I got ringworm on my face!)
I'm feeling pretty good about it all. I think by tomorrow there will be no indication there was even a mark on the pup's stomach. What a relief! The lesson here is don't self-diagnose on the Internet and don't ask a knowledgeable person who is in a hurry for a diagnosis!
7 comments:
This is exactly what our puppy has! Did you find out whether or not it was ringworm?
Luckily for us it was an insect (we think spider) bite and disappeared within a couple of days. I was very relieved as the maintenance required in eradicating ringworm is long and time-consuming for both the dog and the owner. Best of luck for your pup!
I am so glad to see this pic. I am off to the doctor tomorrow. I have the same exact looking spot on my arm. I thought I'd been bitten, no big deal.. but it's been four days and it's not going away.. I showed a friend and she screamed ringworm.. off to the pharmacy.. pharmacists say spider bit not ringworm. I will be so glad to go to the doc and him say for sure, at least since reading this I can sleep in peace!!! xo glad your dog is good! Night!
Dear A: Hope the mark on your arm is also a bite, not ringworm! The care of it is so intense.
Might be ticks because they can also leave a bulls eye mark like that
This is a very interesting article and comments. My puppy (80lb female lab) has them all over her underside from chest to groin and we have been trying to figure out what it is. We changed her diet, flea meds and still no relief. Her brother has a few marks but no where near as many. The best we could come up with was ant bite allergies. I was really starting to think ring worm. Thank you everyone. And yes, even consulted the vet over a year ago and even he had no clue other than give steroids and keep an eye on her. So again, Thank you!!! I am taking her to a clinic this week coming and going to have them check them again to be on safe side.
Best of luck with your girl! I was grateful Bella's wasn't ringworm!
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